I remember the day: a sinewy bicycle messenger skillfully weaved through honking automobiles and came to a stop at the traffic light in front of me. But instead of dropping a foot, he balanced high above his fixed-gear pedals for nearly a minute, his crossbody bag bulging against the urgent deliveries within. That was ‘90s San Francisco, when anyone could tap into that free-wheelin’ zeitgeist by wearing a messenger bag — only conformist dorks wore backpacks.

Switzerland-based Freitag got its start in 1993 with messenger bags, and it’s keeping that spirit alive with its latest, the F685 Henry. It’s heavy, water resistant, and incredibly durable because it’s made from worn seatbelts, recycled plastic bottles, and used tarps that act as walls on European trucks. That means no two Freitag bags are identical in a world of mass-produced homogeny.

Ironically, Freitag bags are built to last despite being made from trash. A Freitag messenger bag that I purchased almost 20 years ago is still my go-to for errands around town. I expect the same longevity from the Henry, which I’ve been testing as an all-purpose gear bag for the last few weeks. That makes its $330 price point a …

Read the full story at The Verge.

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In a quiet transformation from merchandising giant to (also) healthcare giant, Amazon may be positioning its sprawling logistics network and growing medical footprint to potentially save lives, starting with your front door. According to Bloomberg, back in 2023, Amazon piloted a several months-long pilot program called Project Pulse, equipping delivery vans with defibrillators and training […]

Donald Trump’s tariffs will hit millions of video game consoles, electric fans and toys shipped to the US from China

An email sent by the Department of Homeland Security instructs people in the US on a temporary legal status to leave the country. But who the email actually applies to—and who actually received it—is far from clear.

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This morning, Bloomberg reported that tech imports would be excluded from the Trump administrations 125% “reciprocal” China tariff. To be specific, this includes “smartphones, laptop computers, hard drives and computer processors and memory chips.” In short, Apple doesn’t really have something to worry about anymore – at least for now. The initial 20% tariff for the “fentanyl crisis” is still in place, however.

While we are safe from imminent price hikes for now, an additional 125% tariff on China would’ve been extremely damaging. Here’s a quick overview bullet we just dodged.

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It's a must-have if you're looking to upgrade your space.

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The Trump administration has excluded smartphones and other consumer electronics from its steep “reciprocal” tariffs in a significant boost for Big Tech as the White House battles to calm global markets after launching a multifront trade war.

According to a notice posted late on Friday night by Customs and Border Patrol, smartphones, along with routers, chipmaking equipment, wireless earphones and certain computers and laptops, would be exempt from reciprocal tariffs, which include the 125 percent levies Donald Trump has imposed on Chinese imports.

The carve-out is a big win for companies such as Apple, Nvidia and Microsoft, and follows a week of intense turbulence in US markets after Trump unleashed a trade war on “liberation day” on April 2. The announcement rattled global investors and triggered a stock market rout.

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A new teaser trailer for Science Saru’s The Ghost in the Shell anime series has been announced on the official Ghost in the Shell website in a post spotted by Anime News Network. The post also revealed some of the staff heading up the series, which includes people who’ve worked on other shows from the animation studio, including Scott Pilgrim Takes Off and Dandadan, both of which have made their way to the US via Netflix.

The trailer cycles through hand-drawn storyboards and key animation reminiscent of the original manga — that’s not a big surprise after the first teaser Science Saru put out, which was itself mostly a collection of images from the manga. It’s also good news for anyone burned by the look of the 2017 live-action Scarlett Johansson-starring Ghost in the Shell movie or the CG-animated Netflix series.

The Ghost in the Shell is being directed by Moko-chan (Dandadan), with other staff including scriptwriter EnJoe Toh (Godzilla Singular Point) and character designer / animation director Shuhei Handa (Scott Pilgrim Takes Off), who illustrated the poster above. It’s due out in 2026, but the announcement doesn’t mention whether that includes a US Netflix re …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Batman, Robin, and Nightwing are the galaxy's last line of defense in the tokusatsu-inspired Immortal Legend Batman.

“Mythic Quest,” the Apple TV+ workplace comedy about the making of a popular online roleplaying game, is ending after four seasons. A new version of the show’s fourth season finale — first aired on March 26, and now the de facto series finale — will premiere on Apple TV+ next week, with a new ending. […]

Welcome to Indie App Spotlight. This is a weekly 9to5Mac series where we showcase the latest apps in the indie app world. If you’re a developer and would like your app featured, get in contact.

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VoicePen is a native app for iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Vision Pro that transcribes your lectures, meetings, and any sort of speech into clear notes. All of the transcriptions run through OpenAI’s Whisper model, making it accurate and fast. It also offers more than just meeting transcriptions, and can be used for YouTube videos and other online content.

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Apple has long offered a refurbished store on its website, where it sells recent generation products at a pretty sizable discount. Unlike other refurbished offerings, Apple guarantees a replaced outer shell, battery, and glass – ensuring no wear and tear. You also get a 1 year Apple warranty and the ability to add AppleCare if you’d like.

That sounds great, but is it actually a good deal? Well, it depends. We’ll be delving into Apple refurbished listings, and comparing it to on the market.

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Safe Superintelligence (SSI), the AI startup led by OpenAI’s co-founder and former chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, has raised an additional $2 billion in funding at a $32 billion valuation, according to the Financial Times. The startup had already raised $1 billion, and there were reports that an additional $1 billion round was in the works. […]

After imposing 145% tariffs on goods from China and temporarily suspending others, the White House says certain techs like phones, computers, and processors will be exempt from the additional import tax.

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